RAF Winkleigh

The closure was a direct result of the post-World War II military drawdown. With the end of hostilities, the strategic need for a large number of airfields, particularly those with a specific anti-submarine role like Winkleigh, diminished significantly. The airfield was declared surplus to military requirements and was subsequently decommissioned and sold.

The former airfield site is now a large, mixed-use area. A significant portion has been redeveloped into the Winkleigh Airfield Industrial Estate, which hosts numerous commercial and industrial businesses, including vehicle sales, storage facilities, and a timber merchant. Another large section of the site is occupied by the Winkleigh Solar Park. While the main runways have been largely removed or are fragmented, their layout is still visible from the air. Several original WWII-era buildings survive, including the control tower (which is a listed historic building) and some T2 type hangars, now used by the various businesses on the estate.

RAF Winkleigh was a key Royal Air Force Coastal Command airfield during World War II, playing a vital role in the Battle of the Atlantic. Opened in 1942, its primary mission was to conduct long-range anti-submarine warfare (ASW) patrols over the Bay of Biscay and the Western Approaches to protect Allied shipping from German U-boats. The airfield was home to several notable squadrons, including RAF, Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), and Polish Air Force units. For a period in 1943, it also hosted the USAAF 479th Antisubmarine Group. The main aircraft operated from Winkleigh were Vickers Wellingtons and Consolidated B-24 Liberators. The airfield is particularly famous for its association with the 'Leigh Light'—a powerful, 22-million-candela searchlight fitted to Wellingtons, which enabled them to illuminate and attack surfaced U-boats at night with great success.

There are no known plans or prospects for reopening RAF Winkleigh as a functional airport. The extensive redevelopment of the site for industrial and renewable energy purposes makes a return to aviation use highly improbable. The ICAO code 'GB-0643' is an unofficial, user-assigned identifier, likely for use in flight simulators or historical databases, and does not represent any official aviation status.